Peace Is Only An Illusion
by ChichiriChan86
Summary: After the war the galaxy started to rebuild, ejoying the peace Shepard brought them. Peace, however, is only an illusion. War is never really over. The enemy is unexpected, having remained hidden, being the weaker species for far too long. Now they have the power and they intend to use it.


_**A/N: I was going to wait till I finished my other ME fic before starting this one, but the other one is a long story and will be going for a while so I'm decided to get this one started. I'm so excited about it. There will be a little AU in this, but I will try to keep it to the game the best I can.**_

_**IMPORTANT NOTE: I did not use the generic FShep in the game or the generic FShep name. I will not be using the generic in this fic either. Please don't let this small thing stop you from reading. **_

_**Disclaimer: I own nothing.**_

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After Commander Shepard chose synthesis on the Citadel, peace was spread throughout the galaxy to organics and synthetics alike. The Normandy and its crew had landed on an explored planet near Earth, but they didn't stay long. As soon as they were able to make contact with the Alliance, they sent a reaper ship to the planet to pick them up and bring them to Earth.

It had only been a couple weeks since the end of the war, since Shepard brought peace to the galaxy. Peace though, is only an illusion. Where one war ends, another is soon to follow.

_*No bull Shepard, I want to follow through with this. It's tough keeping it separated from duty. When it's all over, things will be completely different…I hope.*_

It had only been a few weeks since the war ended, but everything seemed to be coming together. Earth was a disaster, but the with the reapers help, things were getting done. Buildings were being repaired and people now found comfort in small apartments instead of crowded warehouses or on the street. It wasn't perfect though, there was still a lot of cleaning to do and loved ones to find.

The Alliance had acquired an apartment building to house their politicians and higher officers. They designated the top floor for the remaining members of the Normandy. It wasn't much, a one room apartment resembling the one Shepard was in when she was under house arrest, a bed on one side, a few pieces of furniture, a small kitchen and a small bathroom. It was home for the moment.

Kaidan stood at his window and stared out at the street below. He and most of the others dedicated as much time as they could to help rebuild. He liked it, it kept his mind off of things he'd lost. He needed to mourn her, but he wasn't ready yet.

The door opened and a young soldier stepped inside, "Major Alenko."

Kaidan turned around, "I see knocking still isn't the Alliances thing huh?"

The young man hugged a datapad to his chest, "I was told you were expecting me. My apologies Major."

Kaidan shook his head, "No…I'm sorry. I was expecting you." He walked over to the small round table in the middle of the room and sat down. "Come in."

The soldier nodded and walked into the room, sitting at the table across from Kaidan. He set his data pad down and hit a few buttons.

"I was ordered to catch you up on what's going on Sir." He read from his data pad as he spoke, "The Mass Effect relays to Tuchanka and Thessia are nearly repaired Sir. Dr. T'Soni and Urdnot Wrex should be able to return home within a few days."

Kaidan laughed a little, "Wrex will be happy to hear that, he's been stranded here too long."

"Yes Sir," the soldier said quickly before continuing. "There will be a meeting on Thursday to discuss the next move in the recovery of our home world and colonies. The ceremony to remember the fallen will be tomorrow afternoon. Admiral Hackett has asked that you prepare a speech for Admiral Anderson. Also, I was informed that you would handle the funeral services for Commander Shepard?" He glanced up at him and Kaidan nodded, but said nothing. The soldier paused a moment and cleared his throat, "Permission to speak freely Major."

Kaidan looked at him curiously, "Granted."

"Sir, Commander Shepard was a hell of a woman who will never be forgotten Sir. You were lucky to work with her. You just arrived here a few days ago and deserve to rest. I can tell them you can't make it to the meeting if you need me to…Sir."

Kaidan shook his head, "It's a welcome distraction. Thank you though."

He got to his feet, "Please let me know if you change your mind." He saluted the Major before heading for the door. He passed Liara on his way out and blushed softly, "D-Doctor T'Soni," he nodded.

She smiled at him, "Thank you again for the extra blankets, my room was a little chilly."

He nodded, "A-anytime. Just, let me know if you need anything else," he said nervously before quickly walking away.

Liara watched him, laughing a little and shaking her head. She walked over to the table and sat across from Kaidan.

"I came to check on you," she said, concerned for her friend. She sat back in her chair, "How are you holding up?"

The Major shrugged, "As well as can be expected I guess." He got up and made his way to the fridge he opened the door and pulled out a bottle of water, "You thirsty?"

Liara shook her head, "No, thank you." He walked back to the table, unscrewing the lid on his water and taking a sip as he sat down. "Do you think you will move on? Find someone new?"

Kaidan thought about that for a moment before answering, "When the Normandy was attacked and Shepard was killed. I had two years to move on…I couldn't do it. I don't see how now will be any different. When you're in love with the most amazing woman in the universe…nobody else can compare. I could never completely give my heart to another woman and it wouldn't be fair to her if she can't have all of me."

"Shepard would want you to be happy Kaidan," she said, concern in her voice.

He smiled at her, "I am happy. What time I had left with Shepard, I spent with her in my arms. I have no regrets." Liara nodded and looked down at her hands on the table, silently trying to decide whether she believed he was truly ok. He knew she was concerned, but he had to take her mind off it. "So I've seen that drell around here a lot lately, something going on between you?" he asked, smirking a little.

Liara looked up at him surprised and suddenly she seemed a little shy, "Um…well," she nervously moved a little in her chair, "I…he…well he is just checking on me," she answered, not looking at him.

"Uh huh…" Kaidan took a sip of water and set the bottle on the table, "I'm just curious is all. You can tell me you know."

The young asari thought about this for a moment before nodding, "Alright. Well…when we first found each other it was not a good time. He found me shortly after we returned to Earth. Last night he came to my room and said that the loss of Commander Shepard a woman who save an entire galaxy and seemed more like a goddess than a woman...showed him how mortal we all really are. That we may be here today, but there is no guarantee we will be here tomorrow. We should be clear to the people we love that we love them…in case there is not another chance."

"So…what happened after that?" Kaidan asked curiously, leaning back in his chair.

Liara looked away, becoming rather shy again, "Well, let us just say that…it was nice waking up this morning with someone I care about lying next to me."

* * *

The pain was intense. A body bruised, broken, barely alive hanging out of a broken metal, single person pod. A low moan escaped the brave woman's throat and she somehow mustered the strength to push the lid of the pod open. It broke off its hinges, hitting the ground with a thud. She managed to roll herself back into the pod, staring up at the sky. She could smell burning fuel; feel the heat of a few burns on her body. There wasn't any smoke in the sky, the fire must be out, but she knew where she was. She was lying in a pod, surrounded by the remains of a crashed shuttle. She was sure of it. After what happened on the citadel, she wasn't sure how she got there, or why she was still alive. The atmosphere was familiar though, the sky was familiar. She closed her eyes, she'd delivered herself to the hands of death before and she was prepared to do it again, but this time she would die on her home world…she would die on Earth.

"Shepard." Ashley's whispers echoed in her head. "Shepard."

"Ash?" Shepard spoke, her voice cracked as it barely escaped her dry throat. "If you are there with your God…tell him I'm ready."

There was silence for a moment as she let her body completely relax, the pain starting to lift. As she embraced the cold touch of death, she was surprised by the answer she received.

"No." The voice was stern this time, but it was still clearly Ashley's. "It's not time Shepard."

At this point the Commander was sure she was crazy, but she felt the need to fight back, "Haven't I done enough? I'm ready to go home," she barely managed to choke the words out. "Let me go."

Then something happened that nobody had ever been privileged enough to see before. A single tear escaped the corner of Shepard's eyes, rolling down her cheek, leaving a streak through the ash and dirt on her face. She was ready to give up. It was over.

"Get up Shepard." The voice ordered. "You are going home."

Slowly and painfully she shook her head, "No, the war is over, there is nothing left for me to do."

There was another silence and Shepard believed this voice in her head was gone, that maybe now death would free her from this.

"Kaidan."

The voice spoke one single word, but it was the only one Shepard needed to hear. She'd left him once before, now she was going to do it again. This time, it was by choice. It was a selfish choice. She laid there a moment, waiting for the voice to give her instructions, but knew that wasn't going to happen. She decided that she had one last fight in her, the fight to return to him. Though she had no idea where she was or how to get back to him…she was going to figure it out.

First thing first, she needed to inspect the extent of her injuries. She slowly lifted her arms, bringing her hands to her face. The pain in her muscles was nearly unbearable, but it was just from the impact of the crash, or perhaps from the length of time she had been stationary in this pod. Carefully she felt around her face for injuries, finding just one small cut on her eyebrow and a lot of soot and dirt. Next, she moved her hands to her torso. There were a few tears in her uniform and a few small scrapes, nothing serious.

Next she moved her hands to her thighs, "Shit," she mumbled, feeling the warmth of blood on her fingertips.

She inspecting the wound more, wincing from the pain. Something was wrong, she needed to see it. Placing her hands on either side of the pod, she managed to slowly pull herself up into a sitting position, screaming out in pain as bones cracked and fire burned in her muscles. She waited only a moment for the pain to subside before using her arms to shove herself to the top of the pod, using it to lean on to keep herself in a sitting position. She was now able to see the small burns on her arms, probably from exposure to fire while she was hanging out of the pod unconscious. They weren't serious and nothing she was too worried about.

Looking down at her legs, she saw the cause of the pain. Blood poured from a gash on her right thigh about five inches in length and dangerously deep. She lifted her head up to the sky, giving a dirty look to Ash, if she was really there and was watching her. When she looked back down, the sun reflected off something in the wound. With a shaky hand, she reached down and pulled out a shard of glass about three inches in length that had imbedded itself into her flesh. She looked down at the door she had pushed off earlier, there was a shattered glass window on the front of it. That explained it. She tossed the glass to the side and looked around her to see what she had to work with.

She was right, she was in the middle of a shuttle crash. Two charred figures lay only twenty feet from her pod. Judging by the burns on the ground, the fire came within feet of the pod, but never reached her. The wind carried the smell of rain on it, a storm must have come through and the rain extinguished the fire before it had reached her. Unfortunately, it seemed the fire had devoured almost everything else. Finding anything that would be useful to her was out of the question.

Next step, find out where she was and how to get out of there. A few yards in front of her was a thick forest. Getting through there would be a challenge. On either side of her was a lot of foliage, but not many trees. That would be the easiest way for her to travel. Suddenly a noise from behind her, made her heart race in her chest. Something must have fallen from a tree and landed with a splash. She realized there must be water behind her, she also became aware of just how thirsty she really was. Her mouth and throat dry, her lips cracked, she needed water. Slowly and carefully she rolled herself out of the pod, landing on her stomach next to it. She lifted her head and saw the most beautiful sight she'd ever seen, a lake of water just ten yards or so in front of her.

Using her arms to pull her, she bear crawled her way toward the edge of the lake. She ignored the pain the rocks caused as she pulled her beaten body over them. She knew she was getting closer, but the more she struggled to get to it the further away the water seemed to be. She lay down for a moment, resting her head on her arms as she tried to catch her breath.

After taking a few moments, slowly, she pulled herself again and in what felt like an eternity, she reached the water's edge. She moved her arms to her sides so she could push herself up, but hit something hard beside her. Looking over she saw a fallen tree, half in the water and half on the shore.

"Perfect," she mumbled.

She grabbed the tree and pulled herself up, leaning on it to keep herself in a sitting position. She cupped her hands and dipped them into the cool refreshing water. Cautiously, she brought the water to her lips and took a small sip. It was pure, clean, water. She sat there for a long time, savagely drinking the water, dipping her hands and in bringing it to her mouth over and over again until her thirst was satiated. Next, she used the log to pull herself into the water. She tore the pants around her wound and inspected it for more glass. When she was satisfied that all the glass had been removed, she washed it out with water. Then she tore a long piece off the bottom of her shirt and tied it tightly around her thigh. She needed medigel but knew there was no chance of finding any. This piece of cloth was all she had to keep herself from bleeding out. There was a noise inside the fallen tree she was leaning on and she turned to see a large lizard crawling out of the hollow end. She squinted a little, not sure if her vision was blurry or if maybe she was hallucinating. The lizard stopped and turned around to look at who had intruded on his sleep. It was scaly, with little patches of fur spread throughout its body, and a long lizard tail. Shaped more like a rat than a lizard, it looked up at her with large eyes. It hissed once, showing a row of razor sharp teeth, and then scurried off into the forest.

"What the hell?" she whispered, confused by what she just saw. The hairs on the back of her neck stood up and she slowly lifted her head to look up at the sky. She saw the sun, high in the sky above her, with a smaller planet nearby. She squinted again and shook her head, trying to convince herself she wasn't seeing what she thought she was. There was no denying it, the planet in the sky, she had earlier thought to be the moon, millions of miles away from where she was seated…"Earth."

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_**A/N: I know you have a million questions, but they will all be answered in time. **_


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